Iron Maiden
Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. The band's discography has grown to thirty-eight albums, including sixteen studio albums, eleven live albums, four EPs, and seven compilations. Pioneers of the new wave of British heavy metal, Iron Maiden achieved initial success during the early 1980s. After several line-up changes, the band went on to release a series of UK and US platinum and gold albums, including 1982's The Number of the Beast, 1983's Piece of Mind, 1984's Powerslave, 1985's live release Live After Death, 1986's Somewhere in Time and 1988's Seventh Son of a Seventh Son. Since the return of lead vocalist Bruce Dickinson and guitarist Adrian Smith in 1999, the band have undergone a resurgence in popularity, with their 2010 studio offering, The Final Frontier, peaking at No. 1 in 28 countries and receiving widespread critical acclaim. Their sixteenth studio album, The Book of Souls, was released on 4 September 2015 to similar success. Despite little radio or television support (aside from the Friday Rock Show), Iron Maiden are considered one of the most successful heavy metal bands in history, with The Observer reporting in 2015 that the band have sold over 90 million copies of their albums worldwide. The band won the Ivor Novello Award for international achievement in 2002. As of October 2013, the band have played over 2000 live shows throughout their career. For the past 35 years, the band have been supported by their famous mascot, "Eddie", who has appeared on almost all of their album and single covers, as well as in their live shows....(Read more) Links with FRS Maiden recorded one session for the Friday Rock Show: this featured Running Free, which was released as a single early the following year and became their first UK chart hit, reaching number 34 in 1980. Their most successful single tracks were Run To The Hills, which reached number 7 in 1982 and hit the top 10 again in a re-recording twenty years later; and Bring Your Daughter...To The Slaughter (1991), their only number 1. It sold 29,918 copies, making it the lowest first week sale for such a single. They enjoyed three number one albums before the end of the Millenium: Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son doubtless achieved this due to TV's heavy airplay (even airing one track on a pre-release cassette recording) and a special show (01 April 1988) devoted mostly to the band and a Bruce Dickinson interview. A measure of the band's enduring popularity among TV's listeners is their domination of the 12th Anniversary Chart of 1990, with five tracks making the cut: this is three more than AC/DC and Bon Jovi, the only other acts to achieve multiple entries. Sessions *One session, available on BBC Archives (EMI, 2002). 1. Recorded: 1979-11-14. First broadcast: 14 December 1979. Repeated: 18 January 1980, 31 January 1986 *Iron Maiden / Running Free / Transylvania / Sanctuary Live *20 February 1981: Reading Festival, 1980-08-23. Available on BBC Archives (EMI). #Prowler #Remember Tomorrow #Running Free #Transylvania #Iron Maiden *26 December 1986: Reading Festival, 1982-08-28. Available on BBC Archives (EMI). #Children Of The Damned #The Number Of The Beast #22, Acacia Avenue #Iron Maiden Other Shows Played *28 April 1980 (Alan Freeman): Transylvania (LP - Iron Maiden) EMI *28 November 1980: 'Prowler (LP-Iron Maiden)' (EMI) *05 December 1980: 'Remember Tomorrow (LP-Iron Maiden)' (EMI) Friday Night Connection (1980) *30 January 1981: 'Drifter (LP-Killers)' (EMI) *06 March 1981: 'Twilight Zone (7")' (EMI) *27 March 1981: 'Genghis Khan (LP-Killers)' (EMI) Friday Night Connection (1981) *03 April 1981: 'Drifter (LP-Killers)' (EMI) Friday Night Connection (1981) *05 June 1981: 'Purgatory (7")' (EMI) *04 September 1981: 'Running Free (12"-Maiden Japan)' (EMI) *26 February 1982: 'The Number Of The Beast (LP-The Number Of The Beast)' (EMI) *05 March 1982: 'The Prisoner (LP-Number Of The Beast)' (EMI) *26 March 1982: 'Hallowed Be Thy Name (LP-The Number Of The Beast)' (EMI) *05 November 1982: 'Hallowed Be Thy Name (LP-The Number Of The Beast)' (EMI) *05 August 1983: '22, Acacia Avenue (LP-The Number Of The Beast)' (EMI) *31 May 1985: 'Transylvania (LP-Iron Maiden)' (EMI) Lie Back And Enjoy It *18 October 1985: interview with Steve Harris and three tracks from Live After Death. *28 November 1986: 'Deja Vu (LP-Somewhere In Time)' (EMI) *23 January 1987: The Number Of The Beast *06 March 1987: Heaven Can Wait *20 March 1987: 'Heaven Can Wait (LP-Somewhere In Time)' (EMI) *10 April 1987: 'Wasted Years (LP-Somewhere In Time)' (EMI) Lie Back And Enjoy It *01 May 1987: Run To The Hills (Live) *05 June 1987: 2 Minutes To Midnight *25 December 1987: 'Hallowed Be Thy Name (LP-The Number Of The Beast)' (EMI) *15 January 1988: '22, Acacia Avenue (LP-The Number Of The Beast)' (EMI) *05 February 1988: 'Moonchild (LP-Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son)' (EMI) *04 March 1988: 'Can I Play With Madness (CDS)' (EMI) *11 March 1988: 'Can I Play With Madness (CDS)' (EMI) *01 April 1988: Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son special. Bruce Dickinson chats over several Maiden tracks. *15 April 1988: 'Only The Good Die Young (LP-Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son)' (EMI) *29 April 1988: 'Can I Play With Madness (7")' (EMI) *Rock Out (August 1988): 2 Minutes To Midnight (album - Powerslave) EMI *19 August 1988: UK Monsters Of Rock, Bruce Dickinson interviewed, with a couple of tracks played. *23 September 1988: 'Hallowed Be Thy Name (LP-The Number Of The Beast)' (EMI) *28 October 1988: 'Prowler' *28 October 1988: 'The Clairvoyant' *30 December 1988: 'The Clairvoyant (7")' (EMI) *27 April 1990: 'Prodigal Son (CD-Killers)' (EMI) *16 November 1990: 'Phantom Of The Opera (CD-Iron Maiden)' (EMI) 12th Anniversary Chart #16 *16 November 1990: 'Run To The Hills (CD-The Number Of The Beast)' (EMI) 12th Anniversary Chart #13 *16 November 1990: 'The Number Of The Beast (CD-The Number Of The Beast)' (EMI) 12th Anniversary Chart #12 *16 November 1990: 'The Trooper (CD-Piece Of Mind)' (EMI) 12th Anniversary Chart #10 *16 November 1990: 'Hallowed Be Thy Name (CD-The Number Of The Beast)' (EMI) 12th Anniversary Chart #07 *17 July 1992: 'From Here To Eternity (LP-Fear Of The Dark)' (EMI) External Links *Wikipedia *Official site *Encyclopedia Metallum Category:Artists